Bows and Lavender photography describe themselves as ” a photography brand built upon the foundation of creativity and fuelled by connection, life & love.” This absolutely stunning stylish wedding was beautifully captured with creativity and attention to detail that showed all the creativity of the wedding design and genuine love filled connection of the couple and their guests.

The wedding ceremony pictures has have a romantic beautiful tone and consistent colorpalette in their presentation . What was the preparation to achieve this ?

To be honest, it was just about the light in the space. The ceremony spot at the Berkeley Church is backlit by these gorgeous windows with so much character. The light pouring in during the ceremony really captured the mood and emotional vibe of the ceremony. We always expose scenes as we see them with a touch of warmth and love.

Your approach is to be engaging and part of the celebration and enjoy all the energy of the day. How did this approach amplify your ability to capture Stephen and Ian’s big day?

When we were kickin back with Ian & Stephen and their family & friends, we try to meld in and get to know everybody as best we can. This helps us by gaining their trust (they know we’re not a bunch of freaks, ha ha) and they totally let their guard down. We love getting messages from our couples and their crew after the day asking us how we get such great, natural shots and the fact that they don’t even remember us being there. We hope for this and love this because the photographs are so much more natural, fun and happen organically.

You created a category called film stills in your albums fromStephen and Ian’s wedding. How did you select images for this and what criteria were you looking for, in these selections?

The “film stills” album holds all of the 35mm and 1200mm analog that Brandon photographs. For Ian & Stephens wedding specifically, Brandon planned on shooting 35mm film which is better for documentary style photographs with the ease of of a fast speed film.

What were some of the ideas and stylistic concepts that Stephen and Ian expressed that they wanted for their wedding photographs?

We met up with Stephen a couple days before the wedding to wander around the hood and get inspiration. Just from chatting with him, we know the goal was minimal with a touch of old world class. After hearing the two of them were wearing white tuxedos, it was a done deal that we wanted to keep the photography element clean to show them off.

Did you work with a range of cameras to capture different styles and moments at this wedding?

Yes, we have a few cameras in the holster! For digital, we use three Canon mark iii bodies with a 24mm, 50mm & 135 mm lenses. For analog, we have a Hasselblad with an 85mm lens, a Leica M2 and a Pentax-K1000. We love the range & diversity that film & digital have to offer.

In a previous interview you say. We love to see what the couple chooses to wear, because that is a huge expression of themselves. What were your impressions of the fabulous choices Stephen and Ian made and how did you capture them?

Oh my goodness, when the boys we’re getting done up in their white tuxedos, I was basically squirming in my seat in anticipation to capture them. I mean, come on, two gorgeous guys in two perfectly fitted tuxedos on a gorgeous summer day in Toronto. It was ADORABLE when they referred to their cumberbun as a cumberpatch, as in Benedict hahah. They looked incredible and felt incredible which was the best part!

How would you describe the wedding style and decor elements that Stephen and Ian chose and what was the result that it created in the Berkeley Church?

The two truly had style and carried this forward in their decor and floral inspirations. Index Flowers set the tone with some truly unique floral installations, paired with custom neon signs that put the cherry on top. They blended the perfect balance of innovative style with simplistic modernism. I felt like a kid in a candy store getting to photograph such unique elements.

If this wedding were a movie what would the synopsis read like ?

Oh my god, what a question! I edited their wedding while watching Gone With The Wind (I was inspired by the old world love at the time!) First off, I feel it would be necessary to hear Clark Gable narrating the synopsis of their day, there something so timelessly romantic about these two that just fits the bill. During their ceremony, everyone was serenaded acoustically to “Your Song” by Elton John. It brought the whole room to tears, including myself. So, I would have to say the synopsis would be so,

“And you can tell everybody this is your song

It may be quite simple but now that it’s done

I hope you don’t mind

I hope you don’t mind

That I put down in words

How wonderful life is while you’re in the world”

The performer was such a dynamo and brought all the guests into the energy of the moment. What was this like to photograph and translate this performance so perfectly in your photos?

Tynomi Banks is an incredible performer, seriously. Unbelievable. And the amount of energy and hype that she brought into the room was ecstatic. As well, to see the joy & excitement on Stephen & Ian’s face during her performance with the icing on the cake. It truly was the best day ever.

Absolute best moment of This wedding day from your viewpoint ?

Stephen’s reaction when Tynomi Banks dropped it like it’s hot. What a way to end the night.

The perspectives you chose to shoot the church from were so unique and atmospheric bringing out all the history while making the setting totally unique for this couple. Is this something you work on consistently?

We always try to be mindful of the locations that our couples choose and try to represent the space and history as much as we can. They chose it for a reason and we really want to honour every part of their day with momentos and photographs.